Wandering Sons
by efreeti
Summary: After experiencing a very bad stroke of luck, Rumpelstiltskin wants nothing more than to return home and plot another scheme. However, touched by the pure heart of a young knight in a neighboring kingdom, his ambitions of hate and vengeance begin morphing into something far more foreign. Life is a series of choices. The ultimate choice faces us all. Which one will be made? M/M
1. Prelude: Demon

Prelude:

_Demon_

The rain fell in droves, drowning the natural music of night and pushing it deep within the earth. Myrtle didn't seem to mind. She was the kind of woman who never let anything slow her down. Not even the lightning and thunder crashing in the black sky deterred her in the least. She had a personal journey to keep and a mission to uphold.

The time was probably midnight when she came to the next milestone of her final destination: a run down gypsy caravan. Lightning illuminated a nearby wooden sign. On rancid wood, written in bright red pigment, were the words:

_Mama Fortuna:_

_Fortunes_

_Hexes_

_Potions_

Surveying the caravan, Myrtle took note that the resident witch had seen better years. The structure was most likely older than Myrtle herself and probably just as decrepit as the woman who inhabited it. The old wood moaned and creaked from the rain, the water drops like stabbing needles against its hide.

It had been quite an ordeal tracking the location of the resident who was most assuredly huddled inside the caravan. Once, everyone knew the name "Fortuna". These days, mentioning such a name would either result in the scratching of heads or bitter glares of judgment. The world was rapidly changing, forcing those with a magical touch outside of society. Witchcraft used to be highly respected, sometimes even regarded as sacred. Now it would just give rise to fear and resentment. Only fairy godmothers were accepted, and even they were starting to dwindle in numbers.

Fortuna, who at one time was referred to as "The Queen of Witches", was now just a murmur in the wind, slowly being forgotten. Myrtle hoped that this forgotten woman would live up to the name she once held.

Without hesitation, Myrtle approached the door. She knocked five times, loud and hard. There was a stir within the caravan. A curse was let out as, what could be presumed to be pots, clattered on the floor. From the door, came a frustrated murmur. From what Myrtle could hear, it sounded like a fit of annoyance at a visitor at this godforsaken hour. There was also what seemed to be a cat growling in the background.

The door opened outwards, nearly shaving off the end of Myrtle's nose. She didn't flinch. In the doorway stood Mama Fortuna, the so-called "Queen of Witches". Oh, how the mighty had fallen. The "queen" was terribly thin and terribly old. Her eyes were black pits covered in sagging flesh, skin withered and decayed. Her arms and legs were more bone than flesh and spider veins crept up them like vines. Her hair was snow white and she had it pulled back in a sloppy bun. Some stray locks clung to her face like wet hemp. She looked dead, but a peculiar glint in the woman's black eye's said otherwise.

Myrtle expected a foul smell from someone so dead looking, but her nose was greeted with the scent of lavender and some other concoction of spice. It was…oddly comforting.

"Mama Fortuna," Myrtle said, pulling back her hood and letting the rain fall over her exposed face and wild, black hair, "My name is Myrtle. I was informed that you would be able to assist me."

The old woman frowned; her sagging wrinkles drooped over her eyes like the skin of a bulldog. "Do you have any idea what time it is?" She croaked. It was obvious it had been a while since she had spoken. "Come back at an hour that is joined by the sun!"

Fortuna began to swing the rickety door shut, when Myrtle caught it with her hand, her strength far greater than that of the elderly woman. Despite this, Fortuna continued to try to close the door, letting out frustrated grunts as she did so. It was almost comical.

"Time is all we have in this life, and mine is ever so precious." Said Myrtle. "If it is money you seek, then I shall gladly give it to you."

Still keeping a firm grip on the open door, her free hand reached to her belt and pulled out a moderately sized sack. Its insides were bulging with gold coins. She shook the pouch in front of Fortuna's face as if she was teasing a dog with a piece of meat. The coins let out a soft ring as they rubbed against one another.

The irate scowl of Fortuna ebbed away, and she said in a quiet and curious voice: "What do you want?"

"Answers." Myrtle said matter-of-factly, releasing the door from her iron grip. "May I come in?"

Fortuna huffed, the hot breath leaving a puff of smoke in the chilled air. She turned and walked inside of the caravan, not saying a word. Myrtle followed suit, closing the door behind her.

The little caravan was very quaint, to put it simply. The smell that filled it's air was a bit stagnant, but not at all unpleasant. It was quite smoky inside. Plumes of translucent violet vapors were pooled up on the ceiling. Its origin was the plethora of dimly flickering candles inhabiting the many shelves lining the caravan's walls. Sitting on said shelves amongst the candles were many mythical oddities ranging from vials, jars, scrolls and books. There were plants and herbs of all kinds hanging from the ceilings and walls, all of which had been dried. Myrtle could not distinguish if some of these flora were for food or potions.

A bed, table, and two armchairs were all the furniture the cramped caravan could fit. Though remarkably elaborate, they were all incredibly water damaged and stained. At a time, they could have been suitable for a king, although, this was the home of a former "queen". The furniture must be a relic from better times past.

In the middle of the table was a magnificent crystal ball. It was cradled by a golden stand, each foot was an elaborately molded snake. The ball itself seemed to fluctuate its colors in the dim light of the candles; the magic it exuded was palpable, almost like an unknown force slowly blowing against Myrtle's skin like a soft breeze.

With her sack of coins in hand, Myrtle took a few steps towards the table, only to be intercepted with a cat that had suddenly trotted towards her feet. It hissed vehemently. The creature was unsettling, and looked like a harbinger of bad luck. Its fur was entirely black with the exception of its white-patched face. The white fur made the thing look as if it had a human skull attached to its feline body.

"Don't mind the cat." Fortuna said flatly. "She's angry that you woke her. Leave her be and she'll do the same for you."

The cat gave a low growl, then trotted away, tucking itself behind a potbelly stove.

Myrtle squinted her eyes as she stared at the stove, the cat's red eyes met with hers before it completely disappeared into the shadows.

"That's not really a cat, is it?" Myrtle inquired.

Fortuna let out a small chuckle as she plopped herself down in the armchair with it's back towards the caravan's only window. "You're very perceptive. She's a familiar, a companion I created from my own being." Fortuna groaned as her back let out a popping noise. She promptly repositioned herself on the chair. "Familiars take on the form of animals, but are really just a collection of magic and a dab of blood and sinew from its master."

Fortuna made a gesture to the chair across the table. "Please. Sit."

Myrtle did so, still eyeing the shadows behind the stove. Fortuna drew her out of her reverie.

"I told you. Forget about the cat. Let me see that little satchel of yours…" Fortuna's demeanor suddenly shifted. Her eyes were gleaming and a small smirk began creeping up her face.

Myrtle found herself preferring the woman's grimace. She complied with the request, dropping the bag of coins onto the table. The contents spilled out on impact, revealing the shimmering gold that would make any greedy fool salivate.

Fortuna smiled a semi toothless grin and examined the gold. It was real. She steepled her fingers and spoke in a low and husky voice. "You're a very persuasive woman, my dear. And to think I wanted to send you back into the cold rain, such a pity that would have been." She gave out another laugh, this one a bit more of a cackle. With a large smile, she said: "What can mommy do for you?"

Myrtle wasted no time. She had already begun to have enough of this crone and her deeply unsettling "cat". Myrtle's dark green eyes had a fire burning in them as she spoke to the old woman. "I'm looking for something." She said intensely.

Although still smiling, Fortuna became a little perplexed. "And what might that be?" She asked.

"A demon." As Myrtle answered, thunder boomed in the background, as if on queue. Myrtle didn't flinch a muscle as the intense cry of nature reverberated through the entire caravan, shaking it as if an earthquake were present.

Mama Fortuna was a bit startled, but gained her composure quickly. She hummed in thought for a few seconds before asking "Hmm, what sort of demon?"

"I don't know." Myrtle replied. "Most likely some sort of imp."

"When did you encounter this demon?" Fortuna's smile was now gone, replaced with intense concentration.  
>Myrtle averted her eyes from the other, older woman. A brief wave of sadness overtook her, something that did not happen to her very often. "I was so young when it happened, but I remember." The fire in here eyes lit once more as she brought her gaze back to Mama Fortuna. "I remember everything."<p>

Fortuna found herself a bit on edge and actually began wishing she had never let this Myrtle woman enter her home. The fates were whispering warnings in her ear. Something did not bode right. Still, she asked Myrtle to continue.

Myrtle gladly obliged…

"I was around eight years old, give or take a year. My mother and father were a lord and lady of the court in the Kingdom of Werner. My mother, she was pregnant at the time, about six months."

It was at this moment Fortuna's heart leapt into her throat. Myrtle continued.

"One night, I awoke to a strange sound coming from my parents' bedroom. My room was adjacent to theirs, and the walls were very thin. It sounded like a voice. I first thought it was my mother whispering, but the voice was too deep to be hers and too shrill to be my father's. I was horribly frightened, but… I loved my mother and father ever so dearly, and I would protect them with my life if I had to. So, I snuck out of bed and tiptoed my way to my parents' room. I managed to grab a broom that was left out in the hall, and peeked through the crack in the door."

Myrtle's skin then went as pale as a sheet, and her eyes turned cold with fear.

"I saw it. God help me, I saw it. It was perched atop my poor, sleeping mother, the vile beast! It was only slightly larger than I was at the time, and upon its head, fire! Red, burning fire! It had its hands on my mother's swollen belly, it was whispering in a language I couldn't understand, something dark and evil. I feared for my dear mother and my unborn sibling, so I dashed into the room, frantically swinging the broom every which way, my eyes clenched in fear. When I opened them, it was gone, escaped out the window."

Myrtle paused, then sighed sadly.

"But the damage…was already done. A few days later, my brother was born. There was nothing we could do to hold off the far too early birth. He was so small; Father could hold him in the palm of his hand. We thought for sure he'd die, it defied fate that he survived. But, he had been cursed. Cursed with perpetual sickness by that thing! Everything in this world is his enemy, even the warmth of the sun…

And after that…after that came the fire. Our home was burned to its moorings. I escaped with my brother, still an infant, cradled in my arms. My mother and father…they weren't so fortunate. I'm sure their death was nothing but agonizing, slow, and torturous. But I know who did it. I know who murdered them!"

Mama Fortuna was still, her face blank and eyes sullen. "Your demon?" She asked.

"I saw it standing over the burning wreckage, I knew it was looking at me, I knew it was smiling!" With that, Myrtle stood up, the chair she had been sitting in forced back. It made a loud "thud" as it fell to the floor. Myrtle's fists were clenched tightly. Her knuckles were white.

"It is for this reason that I have come to you!" Myrtle shouted. "For robbing me of all that is precious to me, I have sworn revenge on this creature! I will make it suffer the same torture my parents endured. I'll make it rue the day it was brought into this world!"

Myrtle was now panting, her hatred getting the better of her. "I've sought you out, "Queen of the Witches"! I've sought you out because you are as old as kingdoms and familiar with the worlds and beings that no one else has even had the chance to imagine! So tell me…" Myrtle leaned forward, slamming her palms on to the table, meeting Fortuna's eyes at the same level. She whispered through clenched teeth "Who is it that I seek?"

There was a foreboding quiet in the room. Not even the aggressive familiar made a sound from the shadows. Fortuna sat there, the same blank expression plastered on her face.

"Well?" Myrtle said, breaking the awkward silence.

Fortuna closed her eyes and let out a sigh. She slowly pushed herself up out of her chair and turned to face the window. The rain was still falling heavily; the thunder had only continued to become louder. How thoughtful of it to give ambiance that matched the mood.

Myrtle stood erect. Fortuna's actions gave away that she did indeed have the answer to Myrtle's question. The question that she had been seeking the answer to since the tragedy had struck her and her family. She became impatient.

"I know you have the answer. Tell me." There was a brief silence before she bellowed: "WHO IS IT?!"

Fortuna winced, but slowly turned around. There was a sad look on her face.

"It's true. I know your 'demon'". She said, eyes dropping down to the floor.

Myrtle grew all the more impatient. "And?"

"Your demon…" Fortuna began in a hushed tone, "Is no demon."

Myrtle gave an arrogant "huff". "Look," she started, "I know what I-"

"Our eyes can fool us!" Fortuna interrupted. Her voice was starting to match Myrtle's intensity, yet it still contained much more composure. "The creature you seek…"

Fortuna paused, as if she was about to reveal some sort of terrible secret. This confused Myrtle.

"…Is?" Myrtle edged on. "Is what?"

Fortuna lifted her eyes from the floor and shot a strong, piercing gaze at Myrtle.

"It's a Fae." Fortuna said intensely, but without aggression. "The actions you speak of were committed by a Fae."

"W…what?" Myrtle stammered. This had taken her off guard. The Fae were creatures of legend, beings of pure magic. Nobody had seen one in eons. It was the general consensus that they had faded out of existence, becoming nothing more than bedtime stories. From what little Myrtle knew, the Fae, or "Fair Folk" as they were often called, were creatures that were never inherently good or evil and rarely involved themselves in human affairs. That was considered beneath them.

Myrtle shook her head angrily. "Don't play games with me, witch! Since when do the Fair Folk commit such unspeakable atrocities?"

The old woman had no answer to that question. Instead, she sunk slowly back into her chair. She rubbed her arthritic knuckles, which had slowly begun to ache with all the excitement. "I assure you. This is no game." Fortuna spoke, barely above a whisper. "It was a Fae that has wronged you."

Myrtle closed her eyes, breathing deeply in hopes of regaining her lost temper. "Very well…" she said solemnly, "Who is this Fae, and where can I find them?"

"You need to journey far, dear girl." Fortuna replied, continuing to rub her knuckles. "From last I heard, though it has been a while, the Fae, or, at least mostly Fae, is-"

"Wait!" Myrtle stopped Fortuna abruptly. "'Mostly Fae'? What's that supposed to mean?"

Fortuna raised an eyebrow. "It isn't necessarily important. Though the one you seek is a Fae, he is also partially human. To anyone with a keen eye, they would be able to see the magic that emanates from his being." Fortuna sighed. "Yet, I suppose there are very few such individuals remaining. I doubt you would be able to pick up on it."

Myrtle's temper began to rise again. "That's a very glaring oversight that you failed to mention until just now."

"Forgive me…" Fortuna's eyes sank once again to the floor. "It was not my intention to deceive." Fortuna sighed. "I'm old and tired. I can't…" Fortuna's voice sank becoming a whisper, barely audible, "I can't remember what he even looks like anymore."

"What are you mumbling about?" Myrtle asked, her voice becoming all the more impatient. She didn't here the older woman's words.

"Nothing." Fortuna replied with a sigh. "Though Fae, he'll look mostly human to you, albeit startlingly different. You'll know what I mean when you see him."

"Can't you be more specific?" Myrtle asked.

"Memory is the first thing to go." Fortuna replied with a sad smile that vanished as quickly as it arrived. "As for his location…" Fortuna paused in thought before continuing. "He should be in the very far north, in the last kingdom of magic."

Myrtle was a bit confused until Fortuna's words dawned on her. "Kingdom of magic? You mean Far, Far Away?" Myrtle raced towards the seated Fortuna. She kneeled down on the ground, clasping both of the elderly woman's bony shoulders in her hands. "That's where I'll find him, you're certain?"

"I'm not certain." Fortuna said, taken aback by Myrtle's action. "I only know that that kingdom is important to him and has been his place of residence for decades."

Myrtle's eyes grew large. This was it. The information she had been looking for for so, so long. In excitement, she began shaking Fortuna's shoulders, causing a slightly pained look from the old woman's wrinkled face.

"A name!" Myrtle shouted. "Give me the name!"

As Mama Fortuna began to answer, there was a single second which spread out for what seemed like an eternity. The rapid beating of Myrtle's heart drowned out all sounds. Mama Fortuna spoke:

"…Rumpelstiltskin."


	2. Author's Update

Hey guys, I'm sorry about the lack of updates. I just graduated from college and am ready to start up on this again. I'm tweaking everything and developing the full arc before I start actually writing. All of the chapters are going to be revised or completely rewritten.

As of right now, the story is not abandoned, just incredibly delayed due to my busy lifestyle. Since I've got the beginning arc for the most part figured out, check back later this week as I'll probably have made changes to the chapters that are going to drastically improve the overall story.

Again, I'm sorry about leaving this untouched for so long and hope to make it up to everyone soon. I'll be making frequent updates on my DeviantArt account (happychild) if you want to keep up with what I'm doing.


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